Maxwell Julien Banks (July 12, 1933 – January 1, 2022), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Max Julien, was an American actor, sculptor, and clothes designer best known for his role as Goldie in the 1973

blaxploitation Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president ...

film ''

The Mack ''The Mack'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation film directed by California native Michael Campus, starring Max Julien and Richard Pryor. The film also stars Oscar-nominee Juanita Moore and Tony-nominated actor Dick Anthony Williams. Filmed in ...

''. Julien also appeared in '' Def Jam's How to Be a Player'' and he guest starred on TV shows such as ''

The Mod Squad ''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III ...

'', '' The Bold Ones: The Protectors,'' and '' One on One''. He began his career on the stage on New York City's

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

circuit including roles in

Joseph Papp Joseph Papp (born Joseph Papirofsky; June 22, 1921 – October 31, 1991) was an American theatrical producer and director. He established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in Lower Manhattan. There Papp created a y ...

's ''Shakespeare-In-The-Park''. Moving westward to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

, he landed co-starring roles with

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...

in ''

Psych-Out ''Psych-Out'' is a 1968 American psychedelic film about hippies, psychedelic music and recreational drugs starring Susan Strasberg, Jack Nicholson (the film's leading man despite being billed under supporting player Dean Stockwell) and Bruce D ...

'' and

Candice Bergen Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an American actress. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom '' Murphy Brown'' (1988–1998, 2018). She is also kn ...

in Columbia's box-office hit film ''

Getting Straight ''Getting Straight'' is a 1970 American comedy film motion picture directed by Richard Rush, released by Columbia Pictures. The story centered upon student politics at a university in the early 1970s, seen through the eyes of non-conformist gra ...

''. While spending time in

Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, he wrote and directed a documentary called ''Trestevre'', then wrote the screenplay for, and subsequently co-produced, Warner Brothers's blaxploitation classic ''

Cleopatra Jones ''Cleopatra Jones'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation film directed by Jack Starrett. Tamara Dobson stars as an undercover government agent who uses the day job of supermodel as her cover and an excuse to travel to exotic places. Bernie Casey, ...

,'' which starred actress

Tamara Dobson Tamara Janice Dobson (May 14, 1947 – October 2, 2006) was an American actress and fashion model. Beginning her career in modeling during the late 1960s, Dobson became best known for her title role as government agent Cleopatra "Cleo" Jones the ...

in the title role as a narcotics agent who was as skilled in martial arts as she was with firearms. Julien refused to participate in the sequel, '' Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold,'' which led to his being credited instead with the film's story and script both being "based on characters created by Max Julien".

Critics

For his performance in 1968's '' Up Tight!'', ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' movie critic

Judith Crist Judith Crist (; May 22, 1922 – August 7, 2012) was an American film critic and academic. She appeared regularly on the ''Today'' show from 1964 to 1973 Martin, Douglas (August 8, 2012)"Judith Crist, Zinging and Influential Film Critic, ...

stated that Julien was, "a standout in a standout cast." Raoul Gripenwaldt from ''The Santa Monica Evening Outlook'' wrote, "Max Julien's portrayal of Johnny Wells in Paramount's '' Uptight'' could very well result in an Academy Award." ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' chimed in, "Max Julien creates a memorable piece of reality." As a reward, Julien was invited to Europe to discuss film possibilities.

In popular culture

Curren$y Shante Scott Franklin (born April 4, 1981), better known by his stage name Currensy (often stylized as Curren$y), is an American rapper. In 2011, he founded the label Jet Life Recordings. Music career 2002–2008: No Limit and Young Mone ...

's 2012 mixtape "Priest Andretti" features a song named after the actor, produced by Beat Butcha. The New Orleans rapper also mentions Max Julien in his song, "What's What," off of his 2011 album Weekend at Burnie's. * Many rappers have sampled his voice from ''The Mack'', including

Craig Mack Craig Jamieson Mack (May 10, 1971 – March 12, 2018) was an American rapper and record producer, and was famous during his tenure under Bad Boy Records. Early life and career Craig Jamieson Mack was born in The Bronx, New York, and raised on ...

Lloyd Banks Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, alongside childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo. After ...

Gangrene Gangrene is a type of tissue death caused by a lack of blood supply. Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, swelling, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. The feet and hands are most commonly affected. If the gan ...

, Big K.R.I.T. and Do or Die. Multiple R&B, hip-hop and rock artists (i.e.,

Too Short Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966), better known by the stage name Too Short (stylized as Too $hort), is an American rapper and record producer. He became famous in the West Coast hip hop scene in the late 1980s, with lyrics often based on ...

Rappin' 4-Tay Anthony H. Forté (born March 2, 1968), better known by his stage name Rappin' 4-Tay, is an American rapper from San Francisco, California. Early life Anthony Forte was born March 2, 1968 and grew up in San Francisco's Fillmore District. He ha ...

P. Diddy Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, ...

Kid Rock Robert James Ritchie (born January 17, 1971), known professionally as Kid Rock (also known as Bobby Shazam), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. His style alternates between rock, hip hop, country, and metal. A self-taught musician ...

) admittedly fashioned their images after Julien's character from the film. * Julien appeared as "Goldie" in an episode of

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...

's '' One on One''.

Personal life and death

Julien was born in Washington, DC on July 12, 1933. He crossed through the Xi Chapter of

Kappa Alpha Psi Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never restricted membership on the basis of color, creed ...

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

on the December 4, 1954. Julien was in a live-in relationship with actress

Vonetta McGee Vonetta Lawrence McGee (January 14, 1945 – July 9, 2010) was an American actress. She debuted in the Spaghetti Western ''The Great Silence'' and went on to appear in blaxploitation films such as ''Hammer'', ''Melinda'', ''Blacula'', '' Shaft i ...

from 1974 to 1977. McGee appeared with him in the 1974 western action film ''Thomasine & Bushrod'', which was intended as a counterpart to the 1967 film ''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The ...

''. He married Arabella Chavers in 1991. The couple resided in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

. He died there on January 1, 2022, at the age of 88. Along with his wife, he is survived by a daughter.

Filmography

*'' The Black Klansman'' (1966) - Raymond *''

'' (1968) - Elwood *''

The Savage Seven ''The Savage Seven'' is a 1968 outlaw biker exploitation film directed by Richard Rush, who had directed the previous year's '' Hells Angels on Wheels''. Rush agreed to direct ''The Savage Seven'' in exchange for the opportunity to make the psy ...

'' (1968) - Grey Wolf *'' Up Tight!'' (1968) - Johnny Wells *''

'' (TV) - Jack Dawson (1968) 1 episode *'' The Bold Ones: The Protectors'' (TV) - Coley Walker (1969) pilot episode "

Deadlock In concurrent computing, deadlock is any situation in which no member of some group of entities can proceed because each waits for another member, including itself, to take action, such as sending a message or, more commonly, releasing a lo ...

" *''

CBS Playhouse ''CBS Playhouse'' is an American anthology drama television series that aired on CBS from 1967 to 1970. Airing twelve plays over the course of its run, the series won ten Primetime Emmy Awards and featured many noteworthy actors and playwrights. ...

'' (TV) - Joe Barnes (1969) 1 episode *''

'' (1970) - Ellis *''

The Name of the Game Name of the Game may refer to: Television * ''The Name of the Game'' (TV series), a 1968–1971 American drama ** ''Fame Is the Name of the Game'', a 1966 American television film and pilot for the series * "The Name of the Game" (''Grey's Anato ...

'' (TV) - Mjoma (1970) 1 episode *''

'' (1973) - Goldie *''

'' (1973) Screenwriter *'' Thomasine & Bushrod'' (1974) - Bushrod *'' Def Jam's How to Be a Player'' (1997) - Uncle Fred *''Restore'' (2001) - Coach Barnes *'' One on One'' (TV) - Goldie (2005) 1 episode

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Julien, Max 1933 births 2022 deaths 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people African-American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers American male screenwriters Screenwriters from Washington, D.C. African-American male writers African-American screenwriters